


Anytime You Want

by Moon_Raccoon_exe



Category: Final Fantasy XV
Genre: Brotherhood: Final Fantasy XV, Clarus is best dad, Clarus just got emotional the poor thing, Fluff, Hopelessly Romantic Gladio, M/M, Supportive Clarus, Supportive Regis, There's Regclar in the optional chapter 2, chapter 2 is optional, you know you want it
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-12-06
Updated: 2017-12-06
Packaged: 2019-02-11 04:13:00
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 8,031
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12927186
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Moon_Raccoon_exe/pseuds/Moon_Raccoon_exe
Summary: Gladnis Week, Day 3: "Brotherhood"[Chapter 2 is optional, features Regis/Clarus only]"Even kings themselves get tired at times, and sometimes all that they want is to take the crown off for only one day and be...themselves."Gladio attends a usual day at work, except this time he's not as proud of his title as usual, and behaves rather upset. Ignis talks him into telling him what's wrong, and Gladio bursts into a rant about youth, titles, and a small fantasy of his."Sometimes all that I want is..."





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Main quote taken from "Summertime" by My Chemical Romance; idea inspired while listening to its piano version. 
> 
> Entry for Gladnis Week 2017, Day 3, prompt "Brotherhood"

The sun was barely midway through rise, and yet the Citadel was full of life. 

It was too early. Somewhere in Insomnia, not even the prince himself had woken up for school, most surely, and he did not need to; he was not late yet. That was how early the first activities at the Citadel started, before schools opened the doors. Gladio used to think that waking up as early for school was ridiculous, considering how late he sometimes went to bed due to his personal duties, but now he would rather be at school. At least he used to get an hour more of sleep. Thank the Astrals he was not always this required at the Citadel and he attended his normal work shift, from midday to twilight. That was much easier to carry. He hated those days when he had to attend work since early in the morning. 

No wonder his boyfriend was a caffeine addict, especially since the beginning of that year. Ignis had started to be more required than he was used to, and now he used to spend most of his time at work. He did have to go there as early every day. Whenever Gladio had to attend work as early, every time he grew an extra knot of admiration for Ignis, and not that Gladio had difficulties waking up early. He was a morning person. Except when he went to bed as stupidly late after a wrecking day. Ignis used to have those every day. It was terrible, and Gladio admired that his boyfriend had yet not given up, and complained so little. As an Amicitia he should be having twice the tasks, he had once assumed, but apparently a couple lessons plus some training was enough to teach him into his duty. Ignis was not only learning to be an adviser, he was also being trained as a strategist, and he had his own Crownsguard training, not to talk about the Council meetings he had to attend in the name of the prince, paperwork everywhere, and so many other ridiculous things, it was stupid. A nineteen-year-old should not have that much weight on himself; there were adults with bigger titles and greater recognition who did not do even half of what Ignis did.

Gladio sighed and caressed his neck with a hand. Maybe it was just him getting a bit tired of all this; of his own weight of work, of Ignis carrying as much and more. He did not complain, not usually; he had been given his duty from even before he was born, he had spent twenty years of his life aware that he was living to fulfill only one purpose, and he had grown becoming proud of it. Ignis looked as proud, sometimes even radiant of pride. It was just…tiring, sometimes. Sort of like the superheroes he watched on TV; saving the world was amazing, but superheroes sometimes only want to sit down and watch a damn movie, and the world insists on getting in troubles and asking for their attention over and over. Batteries get wasted and nobody complains when they run out of energy; they recharge them and wait patiently. So why were humans different? 

He was a twenty-year-old. He was supposed to make stupid jokes, laugh so hard soda would burst out from his nose, have cheesy conversations through texts on the phone, have dramas and romances, be free to wake up at damn nine in the morning if he pleased and cook some pancakes in his pajamas and a messed-up ponytail. At least, some days. At least, a few days. At least one day. But there he was, standing in a room at the Citadel, already showered and dressed in the unnecessary formal Crownsguard uniform, gloves on, an emblem at his chest, the little ropes at his shoulder and right side of his chest, hair already combed upwards. He had started to seriously consider getting a damn buzzcut again, and he saved those thirty seconds of brushing his hair to get some damn sleep. Well, it was not like he was not used to this, the military lifestyle. He had grown like that, waking up even earlier than the sun. But it was, perhaps, precisely because all his life he had woken up as early that he considered waking up late _one day_ would make no harm. 

He knew it was immature and irresponsible, but he went through the small Crownsguard meeting with the head full of thoughts about himself, Ignis, and the youth they were not living. He knew maybe he was just being childish, but he could not help to be as upset and have the head full of said things; he had _just_ planned a good day with Ignis, and now both were loaded with work. Nothing new or particularly important or urgent, just the usual. And that was the worst about it, that it was _the usual_. It was so common to not be able to have one free moment to have a proper date because _the usual_ was that, usual. Meaning it happened with great frequency. It was not one day their work had taken from them, it had been months, years taking them from having one goddamn good day together. Most of the nights that they did get to hang together, they did not even have the energy to go anywhere or do anything, and they only got to part ways too soon, or sleep together. And not that Gladio did not like sleeping with Ignis, heck, he loved it, and he adored waking up next to him. It was just…so frustrating sometimes that the most time they got to spend together on free time none of them were even conscious. Even waking up next to him was just an ideal; mostly, it was just being startled by an alarm, vague muttering, and open the eyes to find Ignis already standing up and heading to the shower. 

Gladio closed the eyes and took in a deep breath, retaining it in his chest for long seconds, trying to calm himself. He was letting his emotions take control of the situation and he had been taught that was possibly the last thing a soldier had to do. He reminded to himself that he was being irresponsible and idiotic; that there were people who woke up much earlier than him to work twice the harder living lives five times the rougher. He was Gladiolus Amicitia, the sworn Shield of the Prince, hence future Shield of a future King, heir of the glorious Clarus Amicitia, the eldest of the young generation of the second most important family of the entire Lucian Kingdom. He was a soldier. He had to be mature, responsible and disciplined enough, more than enough; he could not fantasize about pancakes and loose pajama shirt, or his boyfriend asleep next to him during late morning hours. That was childish and made him the worst Shield ever, a spoiled little brat instead of the…cold, dead, emotionless thing he was supposed to be. 

Gladio slowly let out the breath he had been containing, and opened the eyes. He caught by the corner of his sight range that his dad, standing besides him, was subtly looking at him. Gladio tried to not offer any hints via body language that could betray him; Clarus would catch something was bothering him, would question him, and if he found out that Gladio was for one day hating his job and wanting to be in bed or somewhere else neglecting his duties, he would be embarrassed, disappointed, and ashamed of him. He would not see him as an Amicitia any longer for a good month or two, and he would not lower Gladio from the ‘fragile whiny teen’ tag, or something. Work was sacred. ‘The king comes first’, even before his own life, so in some way duties were also before anything else, including his own damn youth, right? Then so be it. 

The meeting still went on for a few couple minutes before it was over. Crownsguard members all saluted to nobody in particular, gathered in a circle as they were. Clarus, on his side, saluted with a fist to his chest instead of the palm to the forehead, as Shield of the King. Gladio, still not officially a Shield, followed the etiquette of any other Crownsguard member. After saluting, they broke formation and people started exiting the room. Clarus had been teaching Gladio a non-official etiquette, in which they let everybody out before exiting themselves. As ‘future leader’, Gladio had to learn to behave like one. He was not sure he could explain how letting everyone out before exiting himself was part of it, but he understood it and was growing comfortable with it. He thought maybe his dad would start questioning him because of how much he had been staring at Gladio while the rest exited, but he did not.

When the room emptied, Clarus offered Gladio walked out first. He talked something about some training his son had to attend later at evening with the Marshal, at which Gladio replied with a confirmation and information of what hour it would take place. They talked some other unimportant things, before Clarus looked away.  
“Ignis is coming this way” Clarus pointed out. Not even the fact that he had started to call him by his name rather than last name made Gladio feel better. “Perhaps you would like to say hello?”  
“Yeah” Gladio said and forced a smile to his dad, trying to make it as natural as possible. His dad only nodded once, put a hand to his shoulder, and started leaving. Gladio stood in his place, smile gone as soon as Clarus turned his back on him, and watched his dad walk a few steps before he was in front of Ignis. He saw the Shield of the King present a little bow of the head and heard a low greeting, which Ignis replied with a deeper bow and a more formal greeting back. Both retook their ways, one away of the younger Shield and the other towards him.

Ignis saw him and walked closer to Gladio, offering a little smile. He looked exhausted and a little upset, too. It only made Gladio force a sad smile and break eye contact after some moments. Both had planned a simple date for days, for _weeks_ by now, and it had yet not been possible, and it felt like a humiliating defeat. It was worse than whenever the Marshal trained him and he ended up not only putting Gladio tummy-down to the ground, but also crowned the defeat by putting his foot on the young Shield’s head, barely touching not to cause physical harm but enough to absolutely wreck his pride. At least, he could always get stronger and smarter to defeat the Marshal back, but there was no way for him to defeat schedules, work shifts and sleep deprivation, no matter how strong he became. There were things his hands could not do, and it frustrated him. 

“Hi” Ignis greeted lowly once he was close enough. Gladio forced himself to look at Ignis again, and offered another sad smile. He whispered a ‘Hi’ back and leaned down so they could greet with a cheek kiss. They had agreed it was better to not be too explicit on their relationship during work; not hide it, simply keep it subtle. It seemed appropriate. Once they got away, Ignis, still smiling that exhausted smile, adjusted the collar of Gladio’s uniform. The older male only watched him, unable to smile. Ignis looked and behaved like twice his age most of the time. Sometimes it was inspiring; sometimes, it was frustrating. He wanted Ignis to live his youth and be carefree. Sometimes, Gladio wished Ignis had been born in another family, somewhere else in Lucis. If they were meant to be, they would meet sooner or later, anyway, and Ignis would be free from all his duties. A much simpler life for him, not…this. That the crown would miss a genius in that situation, of course, but screw that; Gladio, for a moment, preferred Ignis would be a normal guy with a normal and tranquil life. Screw the kingdom. “How did it go?”

“Eh…” Gladio shrugged lightly and sighed, eyes staring down. “Nothing important. So…” Ignis offered a little nod, understanding. Gladio stared at him some moments, still in the same thoughts, before clearing his throat. “So, uh…where’re you heading?”  
“The ninth floor” Ignis said. “Is that to our favour?”  
“Yeah” Gladio sighed, still rather upset. It was always a nice feeling, when the place they were heading happened to have a route in common that they could walk together. Now it felt humiliating; that they got so happy for a walk through a few hallways during work together was another way of saying that it was usually the most they got, and that shouldn’t be. “Let’s go.”

Ignis did not say anything, but it did not take a genius to see he had already caught something was wrong. Besides their tiredness, that is. Still, the adviser said nothing and he only started walking, offering another small smile to his boyfriend, who only returned another forced one. They walked side by side, in silence. A few people walked past them, and they went together as quietly as before. It was after crossing a hallway, a hall and going upstairs once that Ignis talked.  
“Is anything wrong, Gladio?” the adviser asked carefully and with that tone of voice that felt so comforting, like a warm blanket. The young Shield took in a breath and let it out without opening the mouth, and put his hands into the pockets of his pants. “You look upset.”  
“And you look exhausted” Gladio replied. At first Ignis had seen it as a way to change the conversation, but his mind was sharp enough to understand the subtext in it. 

They stayed quiet and crossed ways with another couple of people going the opposite way, and entered a new hallway.  
“Do you want to talk with me about what’s wrong, Gladdy?” Ignis asked softly, turning to look at him without stopping. Gladio sighed and stared down, caressing his neck again.  
“It’s- fine, really, I just-…” he sighed yet again, dropping his hand. “I’m a bit…I’ve been thinking, I’m…a bit tired, you know” he paused and looked at Ignis for a moment. The adviser only stared back at him, both still walking. Gladio looked ahead again. “…I was…thinking and I…listen, I know it’s going to disappoint you, but I was thinking I would really like one nice day of nothing” they turned to another hallway as he spoke. “I was…musing about my life, and yours, about life in general, and I thought…” he sighed again. “I was thinking…Shield, adviser, that all sounds cool and everything, but when you go deep into thinking you’re born with the duty even before you even open the eyes or can crawl or comprehend anything, and when you understand that one isn’t born as a forty-year-old adviser or Shield, and that…”

Gladio stopped and moved a hand up to caress his temples.  
“I’m sorry, Iggy” Gladio apologized and retook their walking. Ignis followed at his side, quiet and attentive to him. “I’m just…so upset because I’ve really wanted to have a nice free day with you. A day in which we don’t have to worry and just have a good time together” Gladio said without rushing, and they continued until they reached the elevators. One was about to close, so Gladio put his hand in between the closing doors for them to open again. He spoke as he let Ignis inside before following him. “But something always gets in the way. And the worst about everything is that it’s always something…so stupid, so unimportant” the doors closed and they were left alone in the elevator. Gladio pressed the button with the 9 written on it almost without thinking; Ignis still only watched him. “I’d understand if it was something important or urgent, but sometimes they put you to re-read the same documents for the third fucking time” he sighed with exasperation. “And they throw me into a five-hour guard in an empty room. And don’t get me wrong, I know why guarding is important even when there’s no danger, I know, I’ve had this training since I was like eight.”

The elevator stopped at the second floor, but the person who was to take it had apparently left. The doors closed and Gladio continued.  
“You know, sometimes all that I want is a day without having to worry about anything” Gladio turned to look at him, looking ashamed. “I’m sorry, I know it must be disappointing to hear me talk like this, I know you thought me responsible and mature-”  
“No, no, I understand” Ignis interrupted him, turning to face him. “This doesn’t make you irresponsible or immature. You’re proud of your job and title, and I know it. And you give your best on it, and you carry it with wisdom and I’ve always admired you for that” Ignis looked down only so his hand could find its way towards one of Gladio’s. The gloves were thin but warm under his touch. “But you’re human. Of course you get tired of it, in many ways, and that doesn’t make you any less worth of the title” Gladio swallowed visibly and he blinked quickly a couple times. Now he looked just plain sad. “Even the king himself gets tired of being the king. All kings, all princes, even people like cashiers and doctors get tired, we get tired of things that aren’t even an official job, like mothers and siblings” Ignis caressed the back of Gladio’s gloved hand with his thumb. “I understand you. I too carry my job with pride and I would never do anything to be careless about it. But I too sometimes…get tired. Even kings have days when they just want to…take the crown off and have a day for themselves.” 

Gladio looked up at him with eyes that gleamed from a thin wall of tears, and he offered a sad smile at the adviser.  
“I’m proud of being the sworn Shield of the Prince, and an Amicitia” Gladio murmured to him. “But sometimes I wish I wasn’t. And that you weren’t a Scientia.”  
Ignis blinked at him and gave a sad smile back, feeling a knot starting to form in his throat.  
“Sometimes there are days when all that I want is that you and I could be…free” Gladio whispered. “And I mean in every sense. Not only from paperwork and guard shifts; free from the pressure of being the future Shield and adviser of a future king, the pressure of expectations, of leading an entire kingdom, an entire country expecting so much and so many things from us, sometimes I just want a day when we don’t have to overthinking and worry about the future, a day when all this pressure of our duties doesn’t matter, I want a day when we can worry about stupid things like…why I cut my hair or why you stained my favorite shirt instead of…throne issues” he reached for Ignis’ free hand, so now each his hands were locked with each of Ignis’. “We’re so young but we’re not living our youth. We’re just…preparing for our future every day, we do all that we do for the _then_ because we were born to be functional only _then_ , and whatever happens _now_ doesn’t matter, it’s only important we’re prepared for the _then_. And I’m sick of that; we work hard enough for the future, but I don’t want to live _us_ in the future, I want to live us _now._ ”

Ignis was looking up at him with eyes that sparkled, even though there were no tears in them like they were in Gladio’s. They stared at each other and Gladio brought both of Ignis’ hands up. He kissed the knuckles where the hands met, and pressed his forehead to the fingers, eyes closed.  
“Sometimes, all that I want” Gladio murmured, “is a day when I’m not Gladiolus the Shield and you’re not Ignis the Adviser. Sometimes all I want is _one_ day when we’re just…” he looked up and shrugged, giving him a sad smile. “Ignis and Gladio. Just that. The nineteen and twenty-year-old young guys that do stupid stuff together, and have nothing to worry about.”  
He paused yet again. The elevator had stopped only a few times, but it had never welcomed anyone. They were leaving floor eight as they stared at each other.  
“We’ve attended _every single day_ of work, literally every single one. And, I guess what I mean is…sometimes, all that I want” Gladio gave him a sad smile again, “is one day to be cheesy, and run away with you.”

They stayed quiet the rest of the way up. They held hands together, and Gladio lowered them again. Ignis was looking at him with bright eyes and a serious expression, though it remained rather into the innocent colors than the suspicious one. Gladio stared back at him, and his smile started fading. They were almost at their destination and had to part ways, again, like every day. He let go of one of Ignis’ hands to move his up and softly remove some locks of Ignis’ fringe away, even though they returned to their place. Ignis still did not take his eyes off him. Gladio understood that he had nothing to say, and he was not expecting any answer. He was only glad that Ignis was so good at listening, and that he had let Gladio open up about his feelings without judging.  
The ding of the elevator was followed by the opening of the doors. Gladio stared at the hallway outside, the hallway of the place they worked at, the hallway that was just about to separate them, the goddamn cursed hallway, and he took in a deep breath that he let out through the nose. 

He felt Ignis taking his hand again. Gladio looked back down at the other, finding Ignis smiling happily at him.  
Gladio had expected a goodbye, but…

“And why not today?”

Gladio blinked and stared at him with a confused look. His mouth was slightly opened and his eyebrows furrowed, not sure he understood.  
That is, until Ignis’ smile widened and turned into a little grin. Gladio blinked again, a little startled from what he was understanding. Ignis eyes had always been very expressive, and Gladio had started to learn what they wanted to say without needing of verbal words.  
It took him only a second to understand, and his frown started softening slowly until he was smiling as well.

Without stepping out of the elevator, Gladio pressed the ‘Low level’ button.

\--

“Are you sure about this, Iggy?”

“We keep saying ‘one day’, for everything” Ignis let Gladio adjust the hoodie on him as he talked. “We won’t do anything if we always think about doing it ‘one day’. We should start saying _‘today’.”_

Gladio finished adjusting his own hoodie on Ignis’ body. It was oversized on him, but nothing that called too much the attention. Ignis had not wanted a tank top, so he wore nothing under it. The older male wore another of his hoodies, and thanked the Six he had spare clothing in his locker (and spare space in it to fit the jacket of his uniform and his gloves, and Ignis’ vest in it). The least that any of them wanted was for anybody in the streets to easily recognize them and spoil their day.  
Their free day. Without permission, but _their_ day.

The Shield looked up at Ignis and took a second to process the words and their beauty. He smiled at the shorter young man, and the gesture was returned. Gladio stared at him warmly and moved a hand up, which he used to softly caress the tips of the locks that formed Ignis’ fringe, and removed a few behind his ears, unintentionally messing a little with his glasses when he did. He adored Ignis’ haircut, but he had to admit that his boyfriend looked very good with no hair in the way of his face. Maybe he could try messing with it just to annoy Ignis one day. No; not ‘one day’ anymore. _Today._  
With a smile, Gladio reserved his plans to himself and moved the other hand up so he could cup Ignis’ face in them. He brought him close and closed the eyes, pressing a tender kiss to his boyfriend’s forehead through the light-brown locks. 

Ignis stayed quiet for as long as Gladio kept the lips pressed to his head, very softly grasping at Gladio’s own hoodie. When the Shield broke apart, Ignis moved a hand up to take one of Gladio’s, and both looked at each other for a few more moments, sharing a moment of complicity that nobody could understand or comprehend, and, most certainly, that nobody could share. It was only _theirs._

Gladio whispered a quiet ‘Let’s go’, leaned down to press a quicker and smaller kiss to Ignis’ head again, and turned around. He started walking, not letting go of Ignis’ hand, and the adviser followed nearby. None shared a single word in the way to the main entrance of the Citadel, for once using them to walk out and not in. They rounded the roundabout rather than cross it vertically, and were easily let out by the guards at the front entrance.

Once outside, they continued without looking back.  
At first, they walked.  
And then…they ran. 

They walked only a few yards, before Gladio started running without warning; hands together, the action had Ignis being dragged behind. The younger male let out a silenced yelp of surprise, but after it all that he did was to offer a short and low laugh. Gladio accelerated and so Ignis was forced to do as him, following behind, hands still together. That was how they left the Citadel; Gladio running and grinning, at times looking back at Ignis, who laughed and let him drag him somewhere else, anywhere else. 

And running was like their duties and titles were but scarves that they did not tie well to their necks, and flew away with the gusts of wind that crashed on their faces and messed up with their hair. So they did not stop running, and only speeded up, letting the scarves fly and go away and stay thrown on the entrance of the Citadel. They laughed and kept running, stumbled and continued running, talked to each other in little yells and did not stop running, and did not stop running until they were many, many streets away. And they ran simply because if they did not it would not be called ‘ _running_ away’.

They ran like the Citadel was a magnet trying to pull them back. They resisted and refused to go back there; go back to their titles, go back to their duties, go back to being the Shield and the Adviser of the future king. They were only Ignis and Gladio, no title afterwards, no last names either, only themselves, their age, their hands clasped together, and their running feet that did not and could not stop. They ran like their titles were chasing them; refusing to take them back, refusing to let them eat them. Refusing to carry with them, for only one day, all the pressure they held, the doubt of the future, the weight they put to their shoulders, all those hours wasted in work and work and more work. They refused to turn back or slow down and let their lives catch up with them. They refused to give up their youth; they only had one, and they had to live it one day. _‘Today’._

They ran mostly in straight line, wanting to get as far away of the Citadel as possible. The running became frantic, cold air hitting them on the face, and people turning their way, curious and a bit alarmed at the speedsters that could not stop. When they could not cross the street due to traffic flow, they would turn right or left. If there was something in the way, they would round it or jump over it. The only purpose was to run, keep running, and not stop running. For a moment, all that they were conscious was only that; run, as fast as possible, as far away as possible, but run. Together, holding hands, and running. The world was fast, their titles moved fast; they had to run _faster._

“Where are we going!?” Ignis asked in a yell at his boyfriend, not helping the laughter and not sure he knew why he was laughing this much, or why he felt so absurdly happy.  
“I don’t know!” Gladio yelled back at him with a wide grin, looking back at him for a second. Ignis only laughed more. Joy grew in him like a flame; once started, it cannot stop growing. It burnt inside and filled him completely, entirely, to the point he was not sure his body was physically able to contain all that happiness. He could not understand; all that he was doing was getting an escapade with the young man he loved, running through the streets of Insomnia, away of their works and pretending they were normal people for once.

And it was the description that made him understand _why_ he was this incredibly happy.

They started slowing down only because they grew breathless and exhausted, but the stop was immediate. After slowing down enough but not entirely, Gladio let go and turned around; running as they had been, Ignis crashed on him, conscious enough to do it on purpose. Rather than crashing, Ignis ran the two steps he was behind him and immediately threw his arms around the not-Shield, who received him as prepared and conscious, and grounding his feet so the collision would not throw them down. He picked Ignis off the ground a second after they met and spun him around once or twice, using their previous speed as impulse, and soon put him back down. 

Both were laughing as if though this was the happiest moment of their lives. A few people gave him curious glances, and some smiled as they walked past them. They were radiant of joy, and made it contagious.  
Breathless, hugged to each other and laughing among heavy breaths, both stayed quiet for some moments, not able to speak. Their throats were raspy and burnt from the effort, and heart beat like a scared bunny.  
Ignis kept his hands on Gladio’s shoulder and arm, and Gladio had his on his boyfriend’s waist and back. Their foreheads were resting one on top of the other, and they only breathed, eyes closed, smiles big on their faces. 

Some moments later, Ignis moved a hand up and caressed Gladio’s face. He pressed his palm softly against the not-shield’s cheek, and Gladio leaned into it.  
“…thank you, Iggy…” Gladio started, paused and swallowed. He opened the eyes and stared at Ignis. The not-adviser opened the eyes and stared back, cheeks red from the previous run, but radiant of joy. “Thank you for…fulfilling this hopeless romantic’s tantrum fantasy…” Gladio chuckled quietly and stayed quiet. He moved a hand up to caress Ignis’ fringe and face. “…thanks, Iggy. For…running away with me” he gave him a wide smile that, nonetheless, held some shyness to itself. He looked at Ignis with bright and innocent eyes. “I swear it’ll only be one day.”

Ignis chuckled and stared at him with eyes as gleamy and full of joy. Gladio’s hands still held him and his own were still holding him back. He moved one of them up to the back of Gladio’s head, and the other stayed on the not-Shield’s arm. He stood on his tiptoes and rubbed the tip of his nose against Gladio’s, laughing very quietly in breaths. Gladio’s arms sneaked around him, one around his waist and the other rounding the back of his ribcage. Both closed the eyes, one smiling and the other still laughing softly, noses poking each other. 

Before they would kiss, Ignis contained a sigh in his chest and felt his inside giving in to the joy; rather than ecstatic, the happiness gave him absolute peace. For once, the world was right, and they were free from any duty or title. The not-Shield kept his love hugged, none opened the eyes, and the not-Adviser moved his hand from the back of his boyfriend’s head to his cheek, and caressed it with a thumb.

“You can run away with me” Ignis murmured to him, “anytime you want.”


	2. Chapter 2

He was watching them from the seventh floor, since they appeared in sight range.

The Shield of King Regis stood still, no particular expression while watching the two figures at the roundabout of the main entrance to the Citadel. They never once looked back, but Clarus did not need to see their faces to know who they were; he had known Ignis since the child was brought to the Citadel, and knew his ways and manners, ways of walking, and his son was not subtle even when he tried. He was too tall and outstanding. Clarus knew his way of walking even from afar, but even with just the distant figure, even if this had not been his son, he would have been able to easily tell who that was. Still, that they were trying to be subtle had to be recognized. At least they were not careless, cheeky and irresponsible young men, and had morality enough to know this was not strictly correct so, if they were breaking the rules, at least they had the required modesty.

Clarus blinked once and continued watching as the figures tried to stay hidden in the shadows while heading to the main entrance. The Shield stood at a side of the glass wall, looking their way, and not saying or doing anything else. The young males had not let go of each other’s hand during their cautious walk. Gladio was a few steps ahead, as if guiding the smaller figure. 

A few moments while he stared at the young couple secretly leaving the Citadel, he heard a few steps that were followed in syncopation by the sound of a tap on the floor. His ear twitched as soon as it caught the noise, but he did not turn. He was well acknowledged with those steps and that presence to know he was safe from showing any etiquette or reaction.   
Soon, King Regis reached his side, not rushing and taking his normal pace. He had only a few years with the cane, and while it was heartbreaking to see him use it at such a young age, Clarus knew well enough that Regis did not require help to walk or stand, not yet. So, he did not turn or reacted to his presence. He stood still at the glass wall, eyes still fixed on the little figures that walked together, hand in hand.

The King said nothing, either. He stopped and stood at a side of his Shield, and looked through the glass as well in the same direction. He nodded slowly, and started smiling. Both men shared nothing but silence, and saw as the young couple reached the main entrance. 

It was then that Clarus took in a deep breath through the nose, maintained the air inside in his chest, and slowly let it out without opening the mouth. Hearing the noise, Regis started laughing lowly. His shoulders moved lightly with every little noise that escaped his mouth, and he did not take the eyes off the figures of the outside.  
“Took them pretty long, huh?” the King asked lowly. The Shield offered no reply, but his longtime partner knew he was not ignoring him. Regis’ smile widened, still looking at the young couple. “Better late than never, I guess.”

All that Clarus offered as a reply was a slow and silent nod. Regis turned to look at him, and saw the Shield had a blank expression. But he knew Clarus better than anyone, and could see all the emotion that was not in his expression in his eyes. Rather than sad, they were entirely melancholic. The emotion was so strong Regis could almost feel it on his fingertips just by staring at the way that Clarus looked at the couple in the distance. The King smiled a bit more widely and blinked, lowering the eyes for a moment. He sighed and turned to look at the outside again. The couple had been momentarily blocked from their sight as they exited through the main entrance.  
“I am surprised it took them this long to take a day off to _live_ ” Regis said. After he talked, the figures appeared again in sight range; now they were running in straight line away of the Citadel. Gladio was on the lead, and dragged Ignis behind him. The adviser ran as fast trying to catch up, not resisting. The King smiled. “They’re incredibly responsible. Anyone else would’ve done this since age fifteen” he paused for a moment to watch the figures run in the distance and not stop for a single second, growing smaller as they approached the horizon. “It makes me happy to see them acting according to their age.” 

Clarus gave a smile, a little snort, and it turned into a chuckle. His eyes were still sad and fixed in the now tiny figures in the distance that had not stopped running. He nodded slowly and not turning, as if absent from his body.  
“Yeah” he murmured. There was a long pause, and when Regis looked outside, the microscopic figures of the young couple could not be seen anywhere. “I thought they’d never understand that breaking the rules is not always wrong” he admitted, still staring at the last spot where he had seen the couple, as if they were still there. “I was starting to worry that they would never understand life and youth are more than work and duties.”  
“Starting as late, and as responsible as they’ve shown to be, there’s no way they’re breaking our record now, hm?”

The Shield gave a low laugh as response. He shook the head in only a few movements, grinning, though his gaze remained as melancholic.   
“It’s unfair on them, Regis” Clarus said and, finally, he turned to look at his King. He gave the younger man a wide and playful smile as company to his sad eyes. “You had twice the stamina than any of them, and were five times the harder to control. I still believe you were medically hyperactive. I don’t understand why you always refused to get tested.”  
“Plus, I had more autonomy than them” Regis added as if avoiding the previous implicit question. Clarus shook the head and grinned, chuckling. “Ten points to Regis.”

They stayed quiet again after a little laugh. Regis sometimes looked at Clarus, and sometimes somewhere in the horizon, even though the couple had long been out of sight. Clarus’ smile eventually faded as the silence lingered, and his eyes went absent again, lost in thoughts. Regis subtly watched him for some moments before he dared say anything.  
“…they remind me of us, in our days” Regis said softly and in almost a murmur. Clarus took in a breath and sighed softly. “Is that what you’re thinking, Clarus?”  
“Partly” the Shield replied in a slightly broken murmur. He turned to look at his king. “It’s melancholic. I miss those days, in a good way. Seeing them run away, hand in hand…”  
“I know” Regis agreed after Clarus’ pause grew too long. He smiled and moved a hand to get a hold of one of the Shield’s, not squeezing, only holding it softly and caressing its back with his thumb, very slowly. “And the other part?”

It took Clarus only a second. He, yet again, breathed in slowly and too much to sigh heavily, dropping the shoulders.  
“It’s only…” he started. “The way they behave, the way look at each other, something like running away together, even if only one day…” he turned to face Regis properly, standing in front of him. Regis had to hold his cane with the other hand, so instead of reaching for it, Clarus’ other hand found the king’s arm and softly caressed it up and down. He was looking down at the younger man with the same melancholic eyes, that grew both warmer and sadder each second. “All that they do, the way the do it, it reminds me… _so much_ of us…”

Regis smiled warmly at him. He had thought about caressing the Shield’s cheek, but Clarus was holding his hand back, so he kept it there.   
“The way Gladio looks at him, I know that stare” after the murmur, Clarus took a step closer and leaned down enough so he was able to rest his forehead to the king’s. Both closed the eyes only for a moment. “I know that stare…I _lived_ it” they opened the eyes again, and Clarus separated their foreheads but did not step back. “Gladio really cares for that boy…”  
The king smiled at the words. He was not sure Clarus had heard the subtext of what he said, the implicit expression of the Shield’s own love in there, but Regis noticed. Still, this was not about them in those moments, so he said nothing about it. He waited for Clarus to continue.

The Shield let out yet another heavy sigh, and he lowered the head.  
“Oh, Regis” Clarus said almost as if lamenting, “I think I just lost my baby boy to Ignis Scientia.”

Regis still took a few moments to process what Clarus was saying. He stared at the Shield with a blank expression, blinking. Some moments later, his eyes gleamed in recognition and he gasped very quietly and shortly. Clarus looked up at him with sad eyes and lips slightly pressed, as if resisting some tears from even appearing at all. The king, despite the sad look on his partner’s face, started smiling.  
“I know I may just be rushing things” Clarus said, “but…the way Gladio looks at him and how he treats him…” he sighed. “I’ve entirely lost him to Ignis. I know they’re adults now, and I know it’ll still take them years for that, but…” Clarus offered a sad smile, and his eyes finally started drowning in tears. “…realizing that the baby boy that was once so small he barely fit on my forearm is now a grown adult that’s already, so soon, found the one he wants to live the rest of his life with, even if he hasn’t realized yet…” Clarus chuckled, but the wall of tears in his eyes only grew thicker. “…I know I’ll have to let go of him sooner or later, let him live his own life, leave my house and make his own with the one he loves…but…” he visibly swallowed, clearly using all his will to control himself as best as possible. “…but he’ll always be my little boy. And I’m not sure I’m ready to watch that.”

Regis continued staring at him with that slightly shocked expression. Clarus looked at him for only a few moments before he had to break eye contact to lower the head, letting out a short breath and letting go of Regis’ hand to use his own to rub his eyes before they dropped any tears. The King watched him still in a bit of a shock, unsure of how to reply. Clarus continued cleaning his eyes for a moment and he let out a tiny sniffle. To see him this open up about his feelings, it was rare, and despite their entire lives together it still marveled Regis a little. Clarus Amicitia opening the heart in public, even if the hallway was empty, was rare like a gem among ruins; beautiful, but always startling at first. 

The King used his now free hand to softly reach Clarus’ face. The fingertips were first to land there, and the palm followed inch by inch, until it was softly resting against the Shield’s cheek. His thumb did as it had done to the hand, and softly, very softly caressed the older man’s face in comforting little movements. Clarus leaned his face into his palm, like a kitten looking for scratching fingers, and closed the eyes. Regis smiled at the sight.   
“Well” the king whispered, “you better enjoy some time with him every now and then before that happens. ‘Life is more than work and duties’, right?”

It took a moment while Clarus calmed down. When he opened the eyes, they were clear from tears again, and he gave Regis a little smile. He whispered a ‘right’ back, and put a hand on top of the king’s. They stayed like that a few moments, before Regis eventually took his hand away, and Clarus took a step back again, taking in the millionth deep breath to calm himself more. He closed the eyes for a moment and used a hand to stroke his temples, and sighed yet again. When he opened the eyes, he looked much more calm and free from most of the sadness. The king smiled at him as if silently asking him if he was fine, and Clarus, hearing the question with only the gaze, nodded softly, with grateful eyes. 

A few moments later, Clarus leaned down to press a small but tender kiss to Regis’ forehead, like Gladiolus was doing to Ignis somewhere far away of the Citadel, and caressed a few locks of his grey hair.  
“Well” Clarus sighed, “back to work. Not all of us can get escapades at the same time, can we?”  
The King grinned as reply, and saw the Shield step back only to offer a bow of etiquette, a fist to his heart and the body bending in demonstration of respect for his Majesty. Regis smiled at him and gave him a blink that Clarus smiled at, before he was free to turn his back on the king, and started walking.   
“And make sure to have somebody tell Cor he’s got his training session at 4 free” Regis reminded him while watching the older man walk away. “I don’t think Gladiolus is going to appear for it.”  
“ _Or_ we can _not_ tell him” Clarus replied with a hint of playfulness in the voice, looking over his shoulder at the king. Regis started laughing, and his Shield grinned. 

“Where are you heading, now?” Regis asked him, and this time Clarus did not look over his shoulder as he replied.  
“To hold guard at the main hall of the third floor” Clarus replied loud enough for the other to hear. “Seen as some very irresponsible soldier ran away from his duties, somebody has to cover it, right?”

Regis smiled. Not even for one second did he think Clarus would report Gladiolus, so that he was also covering him did not surprise him. Clarus was a wonderful dad, and while he knew and treasured discipline and rules, he knew when it was fine that they were broken, even if it was not himself who did it. 

The King looked through the glass wall again, at the spot where he had last seen the young couple. Gladiolus had one treasure of a boyfriend, but also a wonderful treasure of a father. 

The boy deserved his day. Both did. 

Turning on his heels, the king started heading to where he was required as well, savoring the taste of the ‘I don’t know’ that he would reply every time he would be asked about Ignis’ whereabouts all throughout the day, and smiling at the faces of confusion he knew everybody would make afterwards.


End file.
